AmbergrisCaye.com Home Forums The Cayes Environment Go Green SAY NO TO STYROFOAM IN BELIZE

We live in one of the most beautiful places on earth. Our options for food here on the Cayes are exciting and delicious - fresh, organic, local, fulfilling, and varied by multinational culinary influence. We have access to renewable and recyclable materials, and know the importance of sustainability to our environment, our health, and our wallets.

So why do we continue to allow our local restaurants and eateries to serve us food in Styrofoam containers? It's indisputably horrible for the environment, ultimately bad for us, and ugly boot

What can we do about it?
We can stop buying it! And we can stop buying it right now.

Demand that the restaurants you visit use recyclable containers or don't go to that restaurant. Follow up by encouraging the restaurant in person to use recyclable packaging.

I bought a collapsable container that has a lid. It will fit in any purse or back pack. When my caretaker goes for take out food I ask him to use this. I bought it at either Castillo's or Public Market.
No more styrofoam for me.

Good going, Harriette!

We rarely buy takeout since we either eat at home (usually) or in a restaurant the rest of the time, but it pains me to see guys on bikes carrying plastic bags full of styrofoam containers to take to folks for lunch. There really has to be a better way.

Some places here in San Pedro are switching to the non-styro containers..made of corn starch and completely bio-degradable. Mathieu's is a good example. Cost is no higher (sometimes lower)than styro.

The corn starch products are great... all over Austin these days and they even have cornstarch utensils.

That's great! Unfortunately, Belize is far behind the US in these sorts of environmental initiatives. Hard to even recycle anything here. That is hard to get used to after recycling SO many things in the US. I understand that the infra-structure just isn't here yet, but it pains me to see SO much plastic thrown all over everywhere. Even aluminum cans can't be recycled here, as far as I know, nor glass other than Belikin/Bowen products.

Rum bottles are recycled.
We don't have many aluminium cans.

Where can rum bottles be recycled?

Unfortunately, there are more cans than there used to be as Belikin now comes in cans in addition to bottles.

I am collecting colored bottles - other than Beliken. I want to build a bottle wall. You can drop them off at Birdland or PM me if you want my caretaker to pick them up.